Monday

Congratulations to all of the Sundance Winners!!!Some of these are films that we born in the "DIY spirit" - in terms of focusing on a story that moved the filmmakers, found friends and family to help them make it, and wound up being rewarded for their efforts."When the cost of filmmaking is as much as a pencil and a piece of paper, then we'll see true art."Jean CocteauHere's an excellent clip talking to last year's filmmakers about their filmmaking process:

The Sundance Film Festival wrapped with awards for “The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” director Desiree Akhavan’s accepting look at Christian teens wrestling with gay conversion therapy, and documentary winner “Kailash,” about a Nobel Prize winner’s crusade to end child slavery in his native India...

Other honorees in the U.S. Dramatic competition included Sara Colangelo for “The Kindergarten Teacher,” a remake of the Israeli drama that stars Maggie Gyllenhaal as a teacher who takes credit for one of her student’s creativity, and Christina Choe, who collected the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for “Nancy.”

U.S. Dramatic special jury awards went to first feature “Monsters and Men,” “I Think We’re Alone Now” and actor Benjamin Dickey, star of “Blaze.” Director Andrew Heckler won the category’s audience prize for “Burden,” which stars Garrett Hedlund as a KKK member who experiences a change of heart.

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The U.S. Documentary jury honored Alexandria Bombach with the directing prize for “On Her Shoulders,” a portrait of ISIS survivor Nadia Murad. The judges also announced four special jury awards: to “Crime + Punishment,” “Hale County This Morning, This Evening,” “Minding the Gap” and “Three Identical Strangers...”

The U.S. Documentary audience prize went to “The Sentence,” inspiring director Rudy Valdez to profess, “All my life, I felt like I didn’t have a voice. I felt like my community was under-served. I kept waiting for somebody to help us, [for] somebody to step up to the plate. … I decided I wasn’t going to wait any longer for somebody to give me a voice.”

In the World Cinema dramatic competition, the grand jury prize went to “Butterflies,” a family-centric drama from Turkish director Tolga Karaçelik (whose “Ivy” competed at Sundance three years ago), while Iceland’s Ísold Uggadóttir earned directing honors for “And Breathe Normally.” The audience prize went to “The Guilty.” Danish director Gustav Möller accepted the award, saying, “The idea of the film is that it would be created by the audience … so it’s very special to get the award from the audience.”

The World Cinema documentary grand jury prize went to “Of Fathers and Sons,” Talal Derki’s two-year portrait of the pressures facing children growing up in a radical Islamist family. Directing honors went to Sandi Tan for “Shirkers,” while the audience voted for “This Is Home,” about four Syrian refugee families adjusting to life in Baltimore.

Ethan Hawke presented the NEXT Audience Award to Aneesh Chaganty’s “Search.” The film, which takes place entirely on computer screens, stars John Cho as a father searching for clues to his missing daughter’s disappearance via social media.

The category’s new NEXT Innovator Award was selected by RuPaul, who — as the prize’s first-ever judge — confessed, “We have a tie. I fought long and hard with myself over this,” before presenting to both Jordana Spiro’s “Night Comes On” and Jeremiah Zagar’s “We the Animals.”

Earlier this week, Chaganty’s “Search” received the $20,000 Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, presented annually to a film that focuses on science or technology as a theme.

Tuesday

Drumroll. And the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Award Nominees are…

The past couple months of entertainment news have not been the cheeriest, to say the least. But as the necessary work of righting longstanding injustices continues, the importance of elevating new anddiverse voices inside the film industry remains. And while awards shows may seem like small potatoes in the face of larger global events, the fact remains: championing creative independence and supporting a diverse community of unique, innovative artists remains vitally important—sowing the seeds via pop culture of a better, more equitable future.

So! With that in mind, we’re honored to announce our nominees for the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards, unveiled this morning at The Jeremy hotel in West Hollywood by presenters Lily Collins (To the Bone, Okja, Rules Don’t Apply) and Tessa Thompson (Dear White People, Creed, Thor: Ragnarok). Once again, this year’s Spirit Award nominees represent a true uniqueness of vision and innovation in visual storytelling. They are:

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD

(Award given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)

JEEP TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD

THE CAGE FIGHTER

DIRECTOR: Jeff Unay

DISTANT CONSTELLATION

DIRECTOR: Shevaun Mizrahi

QUEST

DIRECTOR: Jonathan Olshefski

(The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 23rd year, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant sponsored by the Jeep brand.)

KIEHL’s SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD

DAYVEON

DIRECTOR: Amman Abbasi

GOOK

DIRECTOR: Justin Chon

SUPER DARK TIMES

DIRECTOR: Kevin Phillips

(The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 24th year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition. The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant sponsored by Kiehl’s Since 1851.)

AMERICAN AIRLINES BONNIE AWARD

So Yong Kim

Lynn Shelton

Chloé Zhao

(Bonnie Tiburzi Caputo joined American Airlines in 1973 at age 24, becoming the first female pilot to fly for a major U.S. airline. In her honor, the inaugural Bonnie Award will recognize a mid-career female director with a $50,000 unrestricted grant, sponsored by American Airlines.)

But before you start filling out your awards ballot and planning your March 3 viewing party, it’s time for you to help determine this year’s winners.

Members of Film Independent who join by December 7 will enjoy all that our awards-season Membership privileges have to offer, including screeners of select nominated films and access to free theatrical screenings of ALL nominated films in Los Angeles (and don’t worry if you miss the December deadline—screenings and voting are open to all new Members joining before January 19.) Click here for more info. And for information on how to actually attend the Spirit Awards, click here.

The 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards happen Saturday, March 3 on the beach in Santa Monica and will be broadcast live on IFC at 2p/5e with returning hosts Nick Kroll and John Mulaney.

Jennifer Hitchcock’s “Dreams Deferred: The Struggle for Peace and Justice in Israel and Palestine”

Ike Ahloe's "Clocked In"

Brian Paul Higgins “CURE FOR THE CRASH”

Nicholas Plagman’s “THE HAM SANDWICH THAT CHANGED THE WORLD”

Robin North & Kelly Preeper's "Dead Saints"

Mirel Bran’s “ONE-WAY ROUND TRIP” (Romania)

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The mother of all film festivals opens today in the Cote' D'azur. For DIY Filmmakers it may seem like a long way off - but fear not...

Be Good To Eddie Lee

Citizen Mayor trailer

Securitate Hunter

Bathing and the Single Girl

CALL FOR ENTRIES!!!!

CALL FOR ENTRIESThe International Film Festival Submission System

CALL FOR ENTRIES

The International Film Festival Submission System

The DIY Film Festival prefers paperless entries submitted via The International Film Festival Submission System (BrigitFest) – on the Web at Withoutabox.com. Withoutabox provides cost-saving, online entry to major film festivals throughout the U.S. and in Europe with one master entry form, allowing you and us to enter your film more quickly and with greater accuracy. This method is free and easy. Members who choose to join Withoutabox also get $5.00 off their Entry Fees, plus the advantages of Extended Deadlines and Online Press Kit submissions. Click over to Withoutabox, then follow instructions to apply online:CLICK HERE TO APPLY

2010 winning Animated short "The Magnitude of the Continental Divides" by Christopher Coleman

DIY FILM FESTIVAL NEWS archive

LOS ANGELES (Feb. 26, 2008)_ The engaging documentary "Buskers: For Love Or Money," an examination of the world of street performers as told by the talent, has been named Best Film of the 2008 DIY Film Festival, which concluded Saturday.

The film was screened at the American Film Institute as part of the 2008 DIY Convention, which took place Feb. 15-23 in Hollywood and honored the top independent films, music and books of the last year.

In "Buskers: For Love Or Money,” director Chad Taylor (himself a world-class street performer as a chainsaw juggler) gives the history and motivations of his fellow street performers, some well-known, others legends only in their particular square feet of concrete.

The depiction of the performers’ free-floating lifestyle, which combines talent, street savvy and psychology was shot over ten years in various parts of the world and features rare footage of some legendary street performances. For its introspective examination of a world many see but few understand, “Buskers” was unanimously acclaimed as Best Film by the DIY judges.

The other winners of the 2008 DIY Film Festival:

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE: “Glue Boys,” Philip Hamer

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: “The Tribe,” Tiffany Shlain

BEST DRAMATIC FEATURE: “Divergence,” Patrick J. Donnelly

BEST DRAMATIC SHORT: “Henchmen,” Christian Cantamessa

BEST COMEDY FEATURE: “The Book of Noah,” Drew Smith

BEST COMEDY SHORT: “Lowenstein’s A Terrorist,” Eric Siegelstein

BEST WORDL CINEMA: “Remember Me,” Benjamin Tan

BEST STUDENT FILM: “Some Apologies,” Adam Weldon

BEST ANIMATED SHORT: “Pull On Push Off,” Philip Leaman

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: “Murderess,” Scott Coblio

BEST DIRECTOR: Todd Peters, “Let Others Suffer”

BEST SCRIPT: Adam Weldon, “Some Apologies

DIY Film Fest

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CALL FOR ENTRIES

The International Film Festival Submission System

The DIY Film Festival prefers paperless entries submitted via The International Film Festival Submission System (BrigitFest) – on the Web at Withoutabox.com. Withoutabox provides cost-saving, online entry to major film festivals throughout the U.S. and in Europe with one master entry form, allowing you and us to enter your film more quickly and with greater accuracy. This method is free and easy. Members who choose to join Withoutabox also get $5.00 off their Entry Fees, plus the advantages of Extended Deadlines and Online Press Kit submissions. Click over to Withoutabox, then follow instructions to apply online:CLICK HERE TO APPLY

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